Change is inevitable so resisting it would mean blocking your business growth. Digital transformation has redefined business and the travel industry is not an exception. The tools that support your travel business should be modern and they should serve present customer expectations.

• Travel agents and destination management companies should upgrade tools that facilitate and ease business adding to a delightful customer experience

• There are many technology tools that can simplify operations and processes, boost productivity and render the best customer experience

• Your business runs smoothly due to technology tools and helps to better manage the travel business

• Various technology tools provide different features to facilitate functions like booking, marketing, customer management, etc

• We need to keep in mind, that while you are in the travel industry, delay can lead to business loss

• The entire business of travel is time sensitive

• Hotel and travel bookings are dynamic and subject to availability

• Hence managing time is essential to thriving in the business and a travel engine becomes necessary.

   

Benefits of choosing the right tools

• You have different options so comparing prices and getting the best deals is quite a task. But with the right tool, you can find the best deals

• Travel tools help save money

• You can get information about exclusive discounts and deals that can be passed to the clients

• This would certainly make customers happy and they would prefer to come back to you for future travel needs

• Tour operators will not only retain customers but will attract new clients as well.

   

What are must-have technology tools for tour operators and destination management companies?

We have decided to curate a list of 5 essential software tools necessary for a travel agent.

Top 5 essential software tools required by a travel agent!

1.    Customer Relationship Management tool

• Travel agents have to reach potential customers and sell more trips and for this purpose CRM software is vital
  
  
• Unless you track your customers’ buying patterns and have the requisite information about your customers, you cannot offer them the best travel solutions
  
  
• Using traditional tools is not a great idea since the travel industry has unique needs and a standard CRM tool cannot bring the desired benefits.

What features do you need in a travel CRM system?

• Distributing leads among the team members

• Automated notifications for departure and arrival

• A dashboard customized for the travel business

• Incorporating online travel agencies and travel marketing channels 

• Customer categories specific to travel

   

2. Tour designing

• Designing customized tours for clients/travellers is the most challenging and time-consuming activity for a tour operator

• Customers have specific preferences and sometimes rely on you to give them the perfect solution

• Travellers have their budget as well to decide on the choice of hotel booking, travel choices, etc

• This entire process involves choosing destinations, travel and hotel booking, scheduling, pricing, etc

• Customers sometimes change their plans or need your suggestions while building the tour package

• In such cases too, the tour building tools will help you resolve their challenges.

   

What features do you need in a tour building tool?

• Travel Confirmations

• Tour templates

• Inventory system integration

• Booking confirmations

• Reporting and insights on various tours

   

3. Accounting tools

• The finances of your travel company have to be managed in a unique manner as the travel industry requirements are different

• Reservation tools do provide some amount of financial management assistance for tour operators

• But the sales operations of a tour company are complex thus, the accounting system is also complex

• Tour operators have to communicate with destination management companies, tour aggregators, customers, and tour guides

• Preparing invoices and keeping track of accounting and overall finance could be time-consuming

• Thus, a tour operator should have certain features to manage all these functions.

 What features do you need in an accounting tool?

•  Invoice generation for various businesses

• Commission calculation with various business stakeholders

• Sales tracking and analysis

   

4. Content Management Tool

• Tour operators churn out an immense amount of content in the form of blogs, testimonials, and reviews

• Customers also provide their testimonials or feedback on your service

• This is user-generated content that is a strong marketing tool

• Content has to be managed intelligently to attract more leads that convert.

• Thus a content management system is vital.

   

What features do you need in a content management tool?

• Choices to define your audiences

• Easy-to-use dashboard

• Customized themes

• Publishing tools of varied types of content like text, videos and podcasts

   

5. Marketing tool

• Marketing is an essential ingredient of your business

• Now marketing is executed on the virtual platform since we are in the age of digital marketing

• Content is an essential part of marketing and we have mentioned it in our earlier point

• Digital marketing involves marketing strategy, defining the target audience, social media, Search Engine Optimization, lead generation and conversion along with registering customer responses

• Tour operators need marketing tools that manage this entire process since it’s the most vital function for business growth.

   

What features do you need in a marketing tool?

• Lead management system
  
  
• Tracking of the customer journey
  
  
• Email marketing functions
  
  
• Social media management system
  
  
• SEO management system - On-page SEO Optimization 
  
  
• Automated workflows
  
  
• Scope for multi-channel marketing

The present travel business is driven by technology. If you wish to streamline processes to deliver the best consumer experience and grow your business, it’s time that you begin using these tools.

Acquainting yourself about these tools is necessary. These tools will help your team since your team will require lesser time to realize their aim; may it be the accounts and finance department, marketing department, or customer service department.

All you need to do is get in touch with ETOS and discuss your business goals, target audience, and major challenges. They will be able to suggest the best software for your tour operating business.